Date Posted: January 17, 2001
*
* *
Rob
sniffed the fresh air and smiled to himself. Life was good for 'Robbie- Rob.'
All around him, balls cracked against bats as all his favorite music played on
the loudspeakers. The sky was what his father would call Carolina Blue. And
today, his team was preparing for a game. At last, he felt in control of
his own destiny. As excited as he felt about playing, he was even more excited
to be coaching. His sister had made this opportunity possible and Rob had made
up his mind to make the most of it and seize the moment.
It
was seventh period at South Glen South High School. Rob, Guy, Aldys, and the
rest of the team were continuing their practice on the baseball field and
working well together.
After
giving it much consideration, Rob had decided that Aldys would be the perfect
first base coach, based on her intelligence and knowledge of the game. Rob had
also started a subtle campaign to divert Guy's interest from Josie to Aldys,
and he figured the best way to do that would be to express interest in Aldys
himself. Although he was sure none of the other members of the 'in crowd' had noticed
it, Rob discovered that Guy had a habit of watching Aldys. Rob figured it would
make sense to encourage a relationship where he could see that there was
already an attraction. Rob knew there was no hope for a Guy/Josie relationship
in light of the fact that his sister was not really a 17-year- old student.
Besides, she and Mr. Coulson were obviously head over heels in love with each
other. Sometimes Rob wondered why no-one at the school could see what was so
readily apparent to him.
Rob
he thought about the potential performance of his team and felt pretty
confident that they could win, especially considering the way he and Josie had
always worked together. He knew that together they had the ability to dazzle
and impress all the Prom Court voters.
His
only concern about the game focused on Mr. Coulson and his ability to cover the
outfield as the Teachers' centerfielder. Rob's game plan was for a lot of
bunting and infield hitting, but he also knew that he and Josie, as well as
some of the others, had the ability to hit homeruns should the need arise.
*
* *
Josie
fled from Sam's classroom down to the girls' locker room to change into her
summer softball team uniform. She didn't want to take any chances of running
into him again until she'd had a chance to calm herself down. She wanted to
change as quickly as she could and get out on to the field where Rob would be,
so she could really focus on the game and forget about everything.
The
words Sam had written on her paper had hurt her initially, but now Josie was
fuming for the first time since she'd met him.
She
was seething because she knew that he was aware that she was writing
about him, but knowing that, he'd chosen to dismiss her feelings rather than
deal with them. Granted, she knew that she probably wasn't being fair, since he
thought she was his seventeen year old student…but after all that had
transpired between them, the time they'd spent together, the friendship that
was there if nothing else, she felt that he shouldn't have treated her feelings
as if they didn't exist: as if he didn't know who she'd meant. In her heart she
felt that he had to know now that she was in love with him, and in turn he'd
treated her like a child.
'After
all,' she thought bitterly, 'I took a chance writing that paper, letting him
know how I felt. He obviously doesn't think what I feel for him is important.
He probably thinks I'm just one of a big group of girls who get crushes on him.
He and that girlfriend of his will probably get a big laugh over how stupid I
am.' She was really kicking herself. She'd only written that because she was
following her mother's advise about what her mother had said about taking a
chance on something she cared about. 'So much for mom's advice,' she shrugged
and she took off her wings pin and put it in her purse.
Josie
continued to brood as she changed into her uniform. She wore #8 as a salute to
Baltimore Oriole's player Cal Ripken. She'd always worn that number, at her
request, even in college. This particular uniform was the smallest she'd worn
when she was 14 years old. With all the weight she'd lost (20 pounds so far),
it fit her again…she'd even had to take the waist in an inch. The uniform
consisted of black pants with red and white stripes along the side and a black
solid color shirt with the number 8 in red on the back along with her last name
above it. As Josie looked in the mirror and brushed her hair, she realized that
maybe she actually did look a little better with her new shape and blond
hair. But that thought quickly led her back to the fact that it didn't seem to
matter to Sam. 'Who cares?' she thought sadly. 'I'm still alone and always will
be.'
She
thought again about the erotic dream she'd had about Sam. "How could you
think that a dream like that could ever come true for you?" she bitterly
asked her own reflection.
As
Josie ran down to the field, Rob saw her coming and told Guy and Aldys to
continue practicing without him as he walked towards his sister. He could tell
from a distance that something was wrong just from the expression on her face.
"Hey,
Josie, what's up?"
"Nothing,
Rob. My arm is fine and I'm fine and ready to play."
"You
don't look fine, what happened?"
"Nothing…
Just back off."
"Don't
'nothing' me, Josie…I know you. Is this some kind of PMS thing?"
"No!
Just drop it, Rob. I'm going to do my stretches to warm up and I want to do
them by myself, if it's all right with you," Josie said waspishly.
"Sure,
fine, but if you want to talk about…"
"I
don't want to talk about anything or anybody, Rob. I'm sick
of talking about things at this stupid school. Let's just concentrate on
winning this ballgame and do what we need to do so that you and I can
eventually leave here and get on with our lives."
"Okay,
that sounds good. Let me know if you need me," Rob said, backing away,
glad he wasn't the target of her wrath. For the first time since coming to
South Glen South, Rob could see that Josie was really furious. He had a feeling
he knew who was the cause and he knew that was good news for him in one way…but
he was concerned about her. But Rob knew better than to be in the line of fire
when Josie looked like that.
Rob
walked over to Guy and Aldys. "Hey you guys, just a word of warning. Josie
is really pissed about something and she wants to be alone."
They
glanced over at her nervously.
Rob
hissed, "Don't look at her! I mean it! When she's like this, it helps her
playing, but take my advice, don't get in her way. It could be anything, so
don't try to talk to her before the game, okay?"
They
both nodded, giving Josie another speculative glance.
*
* *
As
Josie stomped off to the side of the field to do her leg stretches, she looked
back at the school, but saw no sign of Sam. 'Good,' she thought to herself.
'Just stay away from me, Sam Coulson, and we'll both be fine.' She first
stretched standing up, and then she sat on the ground with her legs extended
touching her toes.
As
Josie continued with her warm up exercises, she started to calm down a little.
Suddenly she felt a presence behind her. She took a deep breath and turned to
confront whomever it was. She was surprised to be looking in the face of a cute
young guy in an umpire's uniform. He was a little shorter and stockier than
Sam, but he looked to be about the same age. He had dark brown hair and
twinkling brown eyes and was smiling at her. When she saw that it wasn't Sam,
she immediately relaxed and smiled back.
"Hi,"
he said, looking into her eyes as he bent to extend his hand. "Don't get
up. I'm Matt Riley, the home plate umpire. I'm a little early… Hey, you're
Josie, right?"
Josie
was startled that he knew her name since she'd never seen him before.
"Yes. Josie Geller, that's right. How did you know my name?"
He
laughed. "A couple of my friends teach here. Scott Romano – you know, the
baseball coach? - asked me to umpire for the game. Then my other friend, Sam
Coulson, is one of your teachers, I think. "
Josie
felt her face flush as she remembered what had just happened between her and
Sam. Matt noticed she looked upset the minute he mentioned Sam's name. 'Isn't
that interesting,' he thought to himself, suddenly wondering about Sam's own
relationship with Josie.
She
was curious now. "So, how do you know my name?" she persisted.
Matt
smiled at her again and hesitated. "Well, this is kind of embarrassing…
Don't laugh at me or anything."
Josie
shook her head solemnly.
"Well,
I'll bet they didn't know you played softball when Scott asked me to umpire…he
called me Monday."
"I
don't think they knew I was playing until yesterday." 'He's flirting with
me,' she suddenly realized as Matt stared into her eyes and sat down on the
ground moving closer to her to talk quietly. 'This cute guy is actually
flirting with me! Wow, that's a first.'
On
the other side of the field, Rob noticed the young good looking umpire sitting
on the ground with Josie and he started to slowly walk up to them. He could see
that they were talking and that Josie looked a little calmer now. He also
noticed that the young man was sitting very close to Josie and that he
periodically touched her as he talked to her. 'Whoa, he's putting the moves on
her,' Rob thought as he looked around nervously for Mr. Coulson, but saw no
sign of him or Coach Romano.
"Josie,
I have a confession to make," Matt said as he moved a little closer to her
and lightly touched her knee. "My friends and I saw you mowing the lawn
over on the north side of town a couple of Saturdays ago. I told them to stop
the car so I could, well you know, meet you."
Josie
blushed and looked down. She'd never had anyone expressed such blatant interest
in her before. She suddenly realized that this was someone close to her own age
who was actually saying he was attracted to her and he was Sam's friend
besides. 'I should be thrilled…so why don't I feel anything?' she thought to
herself. He suddenly reached over and put his finger gently under her chin to
lift her head up.
"Please
look at me, Josie, otherwise I'll lose my nerve. Well, needless to say, my
friends wouldn't allow me to talk to you then. Especially Sam. I think he
thinks, you know, that because you're his student, he has to protect you as if
you were a child or something."
"Mr.
Coulson does treat me like a child," she said sadly, thinking about
what he'd written on her paper. Josie was also confused by what Matt said,
because she thought she might have seen Sam watching her while she mowed, but
he'd been alone then, so something wasn't right. It didn't quite make sense to
her. She looked at Matt. "Do you happen to remember what time of day that was?"
"About
three in the afternoon, I think. Like I said, you were mowing the lawn and it
looked like you were about finished. You were wearing an Orioles baseball cap,
a halter-top, and shorts and your hair was different: in pigtails. Not like I
noticed the details or anything," Matt concluded with an embarrassed
laugh.
Josie
blushed; flattered that he'd noticed all that about her. But she also realized
something else: the time she thought she might have seen Sam was later in the
afternoon, so apparently Sam had driven by alone later. She tried to find a
reason for his puzzling behavior but found none. Even though this young man in
front of her was telling her directly that he was attracted to her, Josie's
main concern remained, as always, Sam Coulson and how he felt about her.
Matt
could tell by the look on her face that Josie was confused, but of course, did
not know the cause. Assuming she was still puzzled as to how he knew who she
was, he continued, "Sam's my friend and everything but…he's got this
fiancé, Lara? She tells everybody else what to do and I think he's becoming
more and more like her after all these years with her. When I asked our friend
Jon to stop the car so I could introduce myself, he told me that you were
seventeen and too young and all. So that's how I know your name. Anyway,"
he put his hand gently on top of hers and leaned forward, "I'm very glad
to meet you. I've been thinking about you constantly for the past two
weeks."
Josie
was a little flustered by all that Matt had said and by all the flirtatious
touching, but she felt her anger return as she absorbed what he'd said about
Sam and Lara and that now Lara was apparently Sam's fiancé. She looked at Matt
seriously, removing her hand from his. "So…Mr. Coulson wouldn't let you
talk to me?" She wondered again about that day when she thought she had
seen him and decided, 'Maybe he was checking on where I lived, since he
obviously thinks I'm such an incompetent child.' It definitely seemed like he
had been confused by the address, she decided, as she thought about it in light
of this new information. And in light of the way he'd responded to her paper,
it was clear that it had nothing to do with any sort of romantic attraction.
No, it was quite obvious that Anita was definitely wrong about that.
Matt
shook his head. "Not only that, but he told me to stay away from you
altogether. So that makes today a little risky for me," he grinned.
"But it's worth the risk to get to see you again. Besides, I believe in
fate. Fate has brought us together. Now you can make your own decision
about me. I didn't know you were going to be here, but I'm glad you are."
He smiled at her again. "I hope you'll at least give me a chance."
Rob
decided it was time to walk up and introduce himself. He knew his sister, and
even though she was talking pleasantly with Matt, he could tell she was still
upset. In fact, she looked angrier than ever. Waves of anger actually emanated
from her and Rob had never seen her look quite that way about anyone.
Rob's
eyes opened wide when Matt explained his friendship with Sam and how he knew
whom Josie was before they met. Since Josie was still being nice to Matt, Rob
had to assume that the anger was directed at Mr. Coulson. However, Rob also
noticed that Matt was touching Josie at every opportunity. He had to fight down
his protective instincts because he knew the guy was most definitely a
womanizer type.
*
* *
Sam
sighed as he changed into his blue on white Yale Bulldog uniform and his Mets
cap. Sam also had chosen #8…and for the same reason Josie had: Cal Ripken. He'd
had the number all through middle school, high school and college.
Sam
felt like he'd just made the biggest mistake of his life by not letting Josie
know how he felt. He knew she was probably down on the field, upset with him.
He thought wistfully about walking her to class that morning and touching her
arm, picturing the way she'd looked in her blue sundress and white sweater and
about the wondrous dream he'd had about holding her in his arms and kissing
her.
As
he and Coach Romano walked out to the field, Sam saw Josie on the ground
sitting next to someone, with Rob standing over the other person. Josie had her
back to Sam and he immediately grinned when he saw that she too was wearing a
uniform with #8 on the back. 'Another connection between us,' he thought
happily.
He
had asked his friend Jonathan, who was going to Baltimore that weekend, to pick
up a Cal Ripken Beanie Baby for him to give to Josie on her birthday. In
addition, Jon was to get two tickets for the July 4th weekend ball game at
Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Since it seemed that he had the support and
permission of at least Josie's mother to pursue her, Sam had also reserved two
rooms at the Hyatt Hotel overlooking Baltimore's Inner Harbor, hoping that
Josie would go with him for a long 4th of July weekend. Now he was wondering
how he'd ever control himself alone with her on such a trip.
He'd
planned to tell her about all of this at the birthday party Josie's mother had
invited him to, when he would also gave her the autographed copy of Cal
Ripken's book, in addition to the pearl necklace and earrings he'd picked out
for her. Sam's grin faded as he remembered the way Josie had looked as she ran
out of his classroom. 'God, I'm an idiot,' he thought to himself. 'The way I'm
going she won't even be speaking to me by the 4th of July.'
Suddenly
Sam stopped short and choked as he realized who it was that was sitting on the
ground so very close to Josie. Everything inside of Sam screamed
"No!" In fact, he had to struggle to keep from saying it out loud.
Matt Riley was not only sitting there, he was periodically touching her on the
leg and the arm, a couple of his more practiced moves. He knew that Matt made a
habit of touching any woman he was interested in. But this wasn't just any
woman; this was Josie. This was his Josie. At the same moment, he saw
that Rob had noticed he and Scott and was walking toward them. Sam couldn't
seem to stop coughing and get his breath.
Coach
Romano interrupted his tumultuous thoughts. "You okay, Sam? He patted him
on the back as Sam 's coughing subsided. "Here comes Rob. Give him the
roster now, Sam. It looks like everyone's here that's playing."
"Would
you just relax, Scott?" Sam said hoarsely, as he tried to clear his throat.
He was clearly irritated at everything at the moment, including his friend.
"Hey
Rob," Scott Romano called, excitement tingeing his voice, "We have to
give you the updated roster."
Rob
jogged the rest of the way up to the two men and squinted. "Updated
roster? Updated how? What's the change?" He looked from Sam to
Coach Romano.
Meanwhile,
Sam was staring at Josie, who was still sitting deep in conversation with Matt
Riley. Sam scowled as he saw Matt pick up Josie's arm and hold it in his hands
to examine it, much the way Sam had done that morning at her locker.
Sam
knew there was a big difference between himself and Matt, and it was part of
what was infuriating him: Matt could openly express romantic interest in Josie
while he touched her and flattered her and did God knows what else, while Sam
had to constantly consider the constraints of a teacher/student relationship.
And Sam knew that Matt wasn't hesitant or reluctant when it came to women, not
by a long shot. Matt was aggressive and forceful, unlike Sam who had a tendency
to be more laidback and shy.
Sam
had never dealt with such overwhelming feelings of love, passion and jealousy
before. Now that he wanted to express his love for Josie, he was frustrated at
every turn, mostly by his own sense of duty as her teacher. He was sure that
his own feelings ran much deeper than any attraction Matt might be acting on,
but he knew that part of what he felt now was most definitely a sexual
attraction, so in that sense he and Matt were more alike than Sam cared to
admit.
Scott
Romano answered Rob, since Sam seemed quite obviously preoccupied. "Sam's
will be playing shortstop today and Ms. Knox is in centerfield. That's really
the only change, Rob. And really, that shouldn't matter to you, since you
didn't watch our practice yesterday anyway," he finished smugly.
Sam
was still staring at Josie, who was doing leg stretches again now. It didn't
help that she looked so incredibly beautiful. And he knew darn well that he
wasn't the only man who felt that way. After what Scott Romano had said at
dinner the night before, Sam felt like every single man in Chicago had his eye
on his Josie. Thankfully, Matt had moved a little to give her some room, but he
was still way too close to her, according to Sam's thinking. And he was
still obviously trying to flirt with her…and it didn't look like he intended to
leave her side anytime soon. Sam would have given anything in the world to
trade places with Matt at that moment.
Rob
stared wide-eyed at the roster for a brief second as he realized what this
change would mean. He looked from Coach Romano to Mr. Coulson. Then, quickly
recovering his composure, he squinted again, smiled, and nodded. Rob knew he
had the ability to adapt to the changing situation, even though he hadn't anticipated
the roster switch. In fact, he relished the challenge that this posed for him.
Rob
cleared his throat and replied coolly, "No problem! That should make it a
more exciting game for the fans." He looked at Sam again and raised his
eyebrows. "Really, Mr. Coulson, I'm a little surprised at you! That's
pretty sneaky. I have to hand it to you. But it seems that not all your sneaky
tricks work in your favor… If I were you, I'd want to be as far away from my
catcher as possible, because that other thing you did…well, that's going to
backfire big time, I'm afraid," he said more quietly and pointed at Josie
with his thumb.
Sam's
tore his eyes from Matt and Josie to give Rob a sharp look. "What other
thing?" Sam asked, dreading the answer.
Rob
moved in closer to them so he could be sure that no one would hear.
"Whatever you did to upset my catcher. I just have to tell you that nobody
plays better, more focused ball than Josie when she's mad. I had been trying to
irritate her last night and today to annoy her, but whatever you did or
said has her really worked up. Just look at how her eyes are flashing
and how flushed her cheeks are. I wouldn't want to be in your shoes
right now, sir, or yours, Coach Romano. She was upset when she got out here and
then that umpire friend of yours told her something else about the two of you
that upset her even more. To tell you the truth, I've never seen her
this angry," Rob confided.
"Angry?
She's angry?" Sam asked fearfully.
Rob's
eyes connected with Sam's and he felt sorry for the guy. "I'm afraid so.
In all the years I've known her, this is the most furious I've ever seen
her," Rob said quietly. "You really hit a nerve there. Oh! And a word
to the wise… She has this little habit of shaking her finger at whomever she's
mad at. If she pulls out that finger, run for the hills."
"Geez,
Sam, she does look hot. What did you do?" Coach Romano asked
nervously.
"Nothing.
Just forget it, Scott," Sam snapped. "Rob here is just using a little
gamesmanship to try and make us nervous." But secretly Sam was alarmed by
this turn of events and Rob knew it.
"Okay,
Mr. C; whatever you say. I need to wrap her arm now and try to calm her down a
little. Oh, and you guys can be home team. I'll give you that advantage since
you have all that age on us and everything," Rob said with a smile.
"And if I were either one of you, I'd stay away from Josie because in this
state I don't know what she might say or do. She already snapped my head off
when I tried to ask her about what was wrong, so I'm steering clear. And I'm
not even the one she's mad at…"
Coach
Romano rolled his eyes. "Thanks Rob, we'll take home field advantage and
your advice. Hey and tell her we're both sorry if you think it'll help. Come
on, Sam; let's go warm up. Isn't that why we're out here?"
"Yeah,
okay," Sam muttered, still glancing nervously over at Josie. Rob was
right; she was angry with him for what he'd written on that paper and for God
knows what else Matt had told her. 'She's never been angry at me,' he thought
worriedly, wondering how he could possible make it up to her, especially with
Matt hovering over her like that.
As
they walked away Scott turned to Sam, "Can you believe how calm Rob was
about your roster change? I wish that kid could work for me, I really do. He's
such a cool customer. And what did you do to Josie anyway? She sure looks fired
up."
"Nothing,
Scott. Just drop it, okay? I think she just misinterpreted something that
happened in class today. I'm sure Rob's exaggerating how angry she is, although
it wouldn't surprise me that Matt would have said something to unwittingly make
the situation worse. I'll talk to her about it after she cools off. Come
on." Sam tried to shrug it off, but the knot in his stomach was growing my
the second.
As
it got closer to game time, the stands were starting to fill up. Most of the
student body and faculty were there including the principal, Jack Kerdan. Mr.
Kerdan always did his best to support student activities and although he had
plenty to do, he intended to stay for at least the first part of the game.
Tickets were selling for five dollars apiece, so it was already a huge success
from a fundraising perspective.
This
should have been good news for Sam, but he was totally preoccupied with what he
was observing with regard to Josie and Matt. It had looked to him like they had
been talking for a while when he arrived and Matt hadn't left Josie's side
since. Sam didn't like it one bit and he had a sick feeling that the situation
was about to worsen.
Sam
and Scott and their team were practicing in the infield, while Rob, Josie and
Matt were now over to the side by their dugout. Sam noticed that Rob was
getting ready to wrap Josie's arm. But he groaned out loud and dropped the ball
Scott had thrown to him when he saw Matt step up and offer his assistance
instead. Then he sat a little too close to Josie on the bench. Sam stopped what
he was doing to glare at Matt who was preparing to wrap Josie's arm while he
carried on a clearly animated conversation with both of them. From Sam's
perspective, it looked like Matt was practically holding Josie's arm in his
lap. Suddenly Sam had a mental image of Matt kissing Josie. He grimaced and
looked at the sky, thinking, 'Oh, God, anything but that!' Somehow he knew that
this day would prove to be torture for him.
*
* *
"There,"
Matt said to Josie, "I'll just wrap a little more to give it a little more
padding on the bruise and you'll be all set." He felt Sam's angry stare burning
into his back even before he glanced over and noticed the expression on his
face. Leaning even closer to Josie, he whispered, "I hope I survive this
day with the way Sam is glaring at me. Will you come visit me in the hospital,
Josie?"
Josie
smiled in spite of herself at the ridiculous image of the two of them fighting
over her: 'Josie Grossie'. "I don't think that will be necessary. I'm sure
he won't hurt you in front of all these people. I can't see Mr. Coulson being
violent. I don't know why he's looking at you like that, though. I just don't
understand him at all."
"Yeah,
me either," Matt said with a shrug. "He's usually pretty easygoing,
but he sure is staring at us something mean. If looks could kill, I'd
definitely be dead by now. It's like he thinks I'm some sort of child molester
or something. You certainly don't seem like a child to me, Josie,"
he flirted as he briefly stopped wrapping her arm and leaned in as if he were
about to kiss her.
"Just
ignore him. That's what I intend to do," Josie said quietly and firmly,
looking down. She instinctively leaned away from Matt.
Seeing
Josie lean away like that, Sam felt like he could breathe again. He hadn't
missed an instant of this interaction between the two of them. He felt like he
was standing on the edge of a cliff, but this was worse than his fear of
heights: worse in fact, than anything he'd ever experienced.
*
* *
Scott
Romano noticed that Sam was distracted and followed his gaze. "Oh hell,
Sam! Are you going to stare at him like that all day? We've got a game
to prepare for. He's just helping her wrap her arm, that's all. He's got that
EMT training and he's putting it to use, that's all it is."
Sam
continued to scowl at them. "How long does it take to wrap one small arm,
anyway? How long is he going to sit like that with her arm in his lap?" he
muttered to himself. He noticed Josie was smiling at Matt now and it made him
want to walk up and slug him. He knew that Matt didn't give up easily and if he
saw him try to kiss her again, Sam knew he wouldn't be able to control himself.
He found himself wishing for the hundredth time that he'd written something, anything
else on that paper of hers so that she would know how he really felt.
Just
then, he noticed Rob walking towards him with a smile on his face. He decided
to direct a little of his pent-up anger and frustration at Rob. Sam looked at
him disgustedly. "I thought you were going to wrap Josie's arm, so it'd be
done right!" he hissed accusingly.
Rob
put his hands in the air. "Hold on, hold on here. He's an EMT and he said
he's your friend… I thought he might do a better job of it. If you're so
worried then I'll check when he's done, don't worry! He is a friend of
yours, isn't he?"
"Yeah,"
Sam muttered. "He's supposed to be."
Rob
walked closer to Sam, where Coach Romano couldn't hear them. "Does he
always approach girls like that?"
"Like
what?" Sam demanded, his eyes flashing.
"I
don't know what he said earlier, but from what I heard, well…" Rob
frowned at Sam.
"Well,
what!?" Sam insisted.
"He
told her you guys drove by or something and saw her and that's how he knows who
she is and he said that you," Rob pointed at Sam, "wouldn't let him
talk to her because you think she is a child…you know, too young and immature
for him. He also said you and your girlfriend like to run everybody else's
lives. Only I think he called her your fiancé."
Sam
gasped and then swore under his breath. 'Leave it to Matt to screw things up
even more…' he thought heatedly.
"Is
that true? The fiancé part?" Rob asked, upset himself. "Because if it
is…"
Sam
interrupted Rob, saying, "No, the 'fiancé' part was never true. In
fact, we've broken up. Matt just doesn't know about it, that's all," Sam
explained.
Rob
looked relieved. "Okay, then. When I walked up, he was saying something
about fate bringing them together again and how he wants her to think about
going out with him after she graduates because he's risking his life asking her
all this with you and Coach Romano in the vicinity. He told her to think about it
during the game and not to give him an answer until later so he can be a fair
umpire. He told her she's going to be enough of a distraction for him as it is
because she's so pretty… Things like that. Some of the stuff he's saying is
funny, so at least he's making her laugh, but Josie's not used to that kind of
guy, Mr. C. Did you know all this when you asked him to umpire?"
"I
didn't ask him, believe me, Rob. Coach Romano did. I'll talk to him,
though…if he ever finishes taping her arm," Sam said waspishly.
"I
was a little worried that he might use the game and all to try and pressure her
to go out with him, and I want to tell you right now, Mr. C, no game is
worth that to me. I want to win, but not like that,"
Sam
could tell Rob was serious now, and he was actually proud of the young man for
being such a good friend to Josie.
Rob
hesitated. "Josie's not used to that type of approach, Mr. C. She's not a
child, but she's not, well…experienced with men, if you know what I
mean. To tell you the truth, she has no experience. I'm not going to let
him use this game as any kind of leverage to get her to go out with him or
worse, you know?"
Sam
felt a pang of guilt, thinking about his own sexual attraction to Josie.
"I
really don't think he's her type at all," Rob added.
"I
appreciate that, Rob. I don't think he's her type, either." He wanted to
scream, "I'm her type!" at the top of his lungs, but knew it was out
of the question. Besides, Rob seemed to understand what he meant.
He
didn't know whether he was trying to reassure Rob or himself as he kept
talking. "But…I think he'll do what he says and try to be fair. I think
he's trying to get her to like him, so he'll probably do his best to impress
her, knowing Matt…as I unfortunately do. He's probably all the more determined
to do it because he knows I'm against it and I let him know it."
Rob
cracked a grin and gave Sam's arm a nudge. "Well, if that's the case, then
I guess Josie's more of a secret weapon than I realized, huh Mr. C? With the way
she looks now and all and the effect she seems to have on men." Sam
scowled and Rob added hastily, "Not me though. Luckily for me, I'm immune.
I've known her too long." Rob looked at Josie and shook his head.
"She sure has changed since she's been here. Sometimes I don't even
recognize her and I've known her forever. It's like I closed my eyes and
blinked and there she was all different and everything. She looks so, so, well,
you know…"
"Yeah,
I do know, Rob," Sam sighed. "I really do." 'You have no idea
how much I know it,' he thought to himself.
"Anyway,
she's kind of naïve about men and this guy has a habit of touching her and I
don't think he should use the fact that she has to stand close to him the whole
game as an excuse to put his hands all over her, if you get my drift. She might
be too embarrassed to tell him on her own."
"I'll
talk to him and get it straightened out, Rob, I promise."
"Thanks,
Mr. C."
Sam
looked down, and then called out to Coach Romano. "Come on, Scott. I need
to have a word with Matt before we start and it would be better if I had a
chaperone."
Scott
looked at Sam and moaned. "Okay, but don't freak out and alienate him,
Sam. He is the umpire after all and he looks like he's doing a good job
on that arm of hers."
Sam
and Scott walked up just as Matt was finishing taping Josie's arm.
"There,
Josie," Matt said as he gently patted her arm. "If you have any
problem with that, remember I'm right behind you." Sam rolled his eyes and
sighed.
"Oh
God, here comes Mom and Dad now…" Matt whispered jokingly to Josie,
"…and they don't look happy."
"Thanks
for wrapping my arm," Josie said shyly, pulling her arm back. "I'm
sure it will be fine. I have to go now." She faced Sam, frowned, and then
turned on her heel to walk towards the dugout.
When
Josie looked at him and turned away, Sam felt his heart sinking.
Matt
looked back and forth between his golfing buddies. Sam looked even more
agitated than before and he couldn't resist the urge to tease him a little.
"Hi
guys! Ready to play?" he said cheerfully. When that garnered no response,
he said, "I have a confession to make, right up front."
"Oh
yeah? What's that?" Scott Romano asked.
"I'm
in love with the other team's catcher. She looks even prettier up close! And
I'm working on getting even closer."
Sam
took a menacing step toward Matt and Scott had to put his hand on Sam's arm to
restrain him.
"Easy,
Sam… He's just kidding. Aren't you, Matt?" Scott prodded.
"Sorry
guys, but she's the woman of my dreams, and I'm not kidding! Who knew
she could play ball in addition to looking like that? Wow! And she's got
the most incredible eyes I've ever seen…and don't get me started on that body
of hers."
"Knock
it off, Matt," Scott said, glancing at Sam nervously. Sam looked like he
was within a hairbreadth of losing it. "She's a student. You can't pull
your usual stuff with her."
"I'm
not pulling anything. I like her, and if she goes out with me after she
graduates, it'll be between me and her and nobody else," Matt said defiantly.
"You two can't run her life just because she's a student, you know. And
Josie and I won't be needing any chaperones when I take her out, either,"
looking Sam square in the eyes. "If you two back off, maybe I'll even
invite you to the wedding."
Sam
needed all the self-control he had within him to fight off the picture he had
in his mind of himself attending a Matt/Josie wedding…and to not jump his
friend and beat him senseless. 'Over my dead body!' he thought angrily. Fire
leapt in Sam's eyes, and he took two deep breaths before he spoke. "Just
do your job and treat Josie with respect or I'll call this whole game off, do
you hear me!? I'm Captain of the Teachers' team and my counterpart, Rob…I think
you've met? Well, he and I both agree that you are to treat her with respect
here or there's no game! If it comes to that and we call the game because of
you, I'll make the announcement myself, and at that point you and I will meet
to settle this outside. Do you understand me?" Sam got up into Matt's face
menacingly.
"Whoa!
No problem. Calm down, Sam. I like her and I respect her and I want her to like
me, so you can relax! Honest! I really like her. I don't know what you think
I'm going to do besides tell her she's pretty. How can you argue with that? I mean,
just look at her!"
"He's
got a point, Sam," Scott offered, trying to assist in the truce. "She
is pretty."
"Stay
out of this, Scott," Sam snapped.
"See,
Sam? At least Scott admits it," Matt persisted. "What's wrong
with noticing and wanting to date a pretty girl? She's not just pretty…she's
gorgeous and I'm attracted to her. If she tells me after the game that she's
not interested then so be it, but I can talk to her and get to know her a
little while we're here. Just because you hang around with that bossy bitch,
Lara, don't think you can boss me around too, Sam. Josie doesn't need
you or your stupid fiancé or whatever she is to run her life."
"Why
are you bringing Lara into this!?" Sam asked angrily. "This has
nothing to do with her."
"Oh,
yeah? Well, it's just like I told Josie," Matt continued, "You are
getting to be just like that bossy girlfriend of yours, telling everybody what
to do. And Josie and I don't need advice from either of you or anybody
else."
"'Josie
and I'? What the hell do you mean 'Josie and I'!? You're certainly not a couple
yet!" Sam said hotly.
"I
think Josie's dating their shortstop, anyway, Matt," Scott Romano warned,
"and he may have something to say, too, if you get out of line."
Stubbornly
Matt replied, "I don't see any ring on her finger, and until there is one,
I think you guys should quit acting like her parents and stay out of her love
life. I don't think she's too happy with you right now, anyway," he
said, pointing at Sam. "And quit staring at me like that, Sam! I'm not
some rapist… I'm your friend, for God's sake. Sheesh!"
Matt
shook his head in disgust. "I've dated seventeen year olds before, and you
knew about it and never said anything. Just because she's your student
doesn't mean you own her. You know, as a matter of fact, I could tell
that Josie was pissed with you from the first time I mentioned your name. Did
you do this to her, too? Did you try to boss her around and tell her who she
can and can't be with in class today? That sounds just like the kind of
righteous crap you'd pull…"
That
taunt hit too close to home for Sam, because Matt was very close to being
right. That was exactly what he had ended up doing in his shoddy
handling of the situation with Josie's paper, even though it hadn't been his
intention. The thought that Matt might be right about him made him even angrier
with his friend, and suddenly, he felt like handling his stress by connecting
his fist with Matt's face. Sam took another step towards Matt before Scott
Romano put his body between his two friends and held them apart.
"Come
on, Sam. You're not going to fight over this here in front of everybody, are
you?" Scott asked nervously, looking at the stands.
"Well,
that all depends on Matt's behavior," Sam snapped.
Matt
pushed Scott Romano aside and stepped towards Sam, poking him in the chest with
his finger. "What about your behavior here, Sam? If I have anything
to say about it, that girl will be dating me soon and you two can just stay the
hell out of it, or you'll answer to me for a change! You're the
one who's upsetting her not me! Isimply helped her wrap her arm and made
her smile. So what's wrong with that?"
Sam
sighed and felt ashamed, knowing that Matt was right about how he had been the
one to upset Josie. But he still wasn't about to let Matt off the hook for
hanging all over her. "Just treat her with respect, Riley, and keep your
hands off her, and you'll have no problem with me," Sam growled.
"Fine
with me…on the first part. Hey, I already said I respect her. But I'm
treating her like the beautiful woman she is, not a child. Maybe you should
take some of your own advice and respect her enough to let her run her own
life, Sam. But, if I want to touch her, I will…unless she tells me
otherwise, not you!"
Sam
glared at him in response but said nothing further. The fury in his eyes said
it all. He wanted desperately to say, "No one touches her, but me!"
but he restrained himself for the moment.
Putting
his umpire mask down over his face, Matt abruptly ended the conversation by
loudly yelling for the crowd but right into Sam's face, "Let's play ball!
Batter up!"
*
* *
As
the first inning was about to start, Josie put on her batting helmet and picked
up her bat. She realized there was a full house, but that had never bothered
her as a ball player and it didn't bother her now. She realized that Sam and
Matt had just had some sort of heated discussion about her and it only angered
her more, as she saw this more and more evidence that Sam did think of
her as a child and was trying to control her life.
Josie
also felt anger about the fact that here was Matt—a good-looking, attractive,
single guy, touching her and flirting with her and she didn't feel a thing. She
knew that she felt more from just looking at Sam than she would ever
feel from touching any other man. She knew that part of her anger wasn't fair,
considering that she was supposed to be seventeen, but she felt it nonetheless.
She knew she'd never love anyone the way she loved Sam Coulson…for all the good
it did her.
As
she stepped up to the plate, Josie noticed that the teachers were setting up
for her to hit in the infield. Rob was on the third baseline coaching and he
signaled for her to swing away. Rob had quickly adjusted his game plan to the
teachers' roster change and informed Josie that she was to aim for centerfield
or beyond.
Rob
had advised her that Coach Romano's first pitch would be the one to hit, as he
typically threw the first one slow and over the center of the plate, assuming
that the batter would take. Her arm felt pretty good and she noticed Sam
looking expectantly at her, almost as if he thought she'd hit right to him.
'Not
this time,' she said angrily to herself. 'This time I'll show you
how strong I can be.' It was obvious that she wasn't being considered a threat
because of her size, and she was sick and tired of Sam treating her like a
child. The more she saw Sam watching her, the more infuriated she felt about
the whole situation, and the more determined she became to prove him wrong.
Sam
studied Josie worriedly. He had never seen such a determined angry look on her
face…and he knew that the anger was directed at him. He tried to get her to
look in his eyes so that he could somehow convey how he was feeling, but it was
obvious that she was determined to keep as far away from him as possible,
physically as well as emotionally.
Just
as Rob had predicted, the first pitch was over the center of the plate, and
just as they'd planned Josie swung away, her anger fueling her natural ability.
The ball went sailing far over Sam's head and over the centerfield fence. The
crowd went wild as Josie ran the bases. Aldys cheered and hopped up and down as
Josie flew past her along the first base line.
Rob
ran in from coaching third to throw his arms around her after she crossed home
plate. Sam and Scott both stood with their mouths open, staring at her run the
bases than gaping at the scene at home plate. Scott Romano took off his cap and
scratched his head and muttered, "Who knew she had that kind of
power?"
Josie's
entire team burst out of the dugout to give her high fives and congratulate
her. "That's my girl," Rob said proudly as he hugged her again.
"Prom queen here you come," he whispered in her ear. Then he smiled
and tipped his cap to Coach Romano.
Sam
watched as Guy Perkins gave her a hug and whispered something in her ear. She
smiled shyly and blushed. Then to make matters worse, he saw Matt come up
behind her put his hands on her shoulders and obviously congratulate her and
whisper something to her, with his lips almost touching her ear. When she
turned around to face Matt, Sam watched in agony as Matt leaned forward and
gently brushed Josie's hair out of her eyes with his hand. Everybody but Sam,
it seemed, could—and did!—hug, touch, and whisper to Josie. Sam was left with
nothing but his dreams of the night before. To add insult to injury, Sam
watched helplessly as Matt playfully messed up Josie's hair as she smiled at
him.
'If
I don't kill him by the end of this game, it'll be a miracle,' Sam thought
angrily.
The
rest of the inning went a little better for the teachers. Coach Romano struck
out one and Sam easily handled two solid infield hits, the last being hit by
Rob, for the outs. But, thanks to Josie, the score was 1-0 for the students.
Sam
took a deep breath as he headed for the dugout and noticed Matt helping Josie
put on her chest protector and kneepads. Here, one of his own friends was
touching Josie and standing way too close to her, and there was nothing Sam could
do about it. Instead, he ran out to coach along the third baseline. He stood
staring at her and tried his best to catch her eye. If he could only show her
even a small portion of how he was feeling… But Josie was having none of Sam
Coulson today, and he knew it.
As
Scott Romano stepped up to bat first for the teachers, Sam noticed that Matt
seemed to be almost touching Josie's backside, or at least it looked that way
to him from his perspective. Thankfully for Sam, Scott noticed it, too.
"Hey, back up a little, Matt. You're forcing Josie to crowd the
plate," Scott directed. Matt obliged by backing up a little, but Sam
noticed him leaning in again after a few pitches. Sam felt his rage growing as
he noticed Matt continuing to glance appreciatively at Josie's body as he moved
around her and leaned in behind her. It suddenly looked to Sam as if Matt was
doing his best to try to unobtrusively smell Josie's hair. Sam was beside
himself with jealousy as he remembered his own fantasies about being close to
her and touching that same silky hair.
At
this point even Rob noticed what was going on and intervened. "Hey umpire!
Back up a little, would ya?" he yelled. "We can't do our signals
properly with you that close to her." This time Matt shrugged and actually
did take a few steps back.
'Thank
God for Rob,' Sam thought to himself as he stood along the third baseline. He
didn't miss the way Josie's eyes flashed angrily every time she looked his way.
As
the inning progressed, Sam finally saw the totality of what Rob had meant about
Josie's catching abilities. She was without a doubt one of the most fiercely
aggressive catchers Sam had ever seen, even at the college level. And he
realized that, for Matt, she was an umpire's dream come true. He never had to
worry about a ball getting by Josie. Both Matt and Sam could see that right
away. And Josie and Rob worked together like a finely tuned machine: they were
that good and that quick and that talented.
If
a foul ball was hit, Josie would throw off the mask and position herself
exactly at the spot where the ball came down. She had that quick instinct that
just seemed to know where the ball would go. And given her size, Sam was
surprised at her ability to leap in the air, when necessary, to get the out. He
was reminded again of how she'd amazed him again and again ever since that
first day in March. They had so much in common…so many things that they shared.
He
remembered how effortlessly she'd leapt and danced on the ice and was reminded
again of how exquisite she'd looked to him that day. He thought about how many
times he'd sat in his lonely apartment staring at the pictures of her, dreaming
about a future together. He felt so impressed with her talent and proud of her
at the same time.
He
wanted to tell her how he felt, here and now, but he realized that even if he
did, it wouldn't have mattered, since she really was furious with him. He saw
it in her eyes whenever she would glance in his direction, even through her
catcher's mask.
Matt
seemed to compliment Josie on every play. She was flattered by the attention,
even though in her heart she knew there was only one man she wanted to hear
compliments from, and that man thought of her as nothing more than a
silly child. She didn't know whether to be angrier with him or herself for
fantasizing about a hopeless relationship and having such a stupid dream.
Josie
knew Sam was looking at her, but she was determined not to give him the
satisfaction of meeting his eye…not yet, anyway. 'Maybe he won't feel so sorry
for me after this,' she thought bitterly. 'At least he'll know I'm not a
total loser if one of his friends is actually interested in me.'
Meanwhile,
watching the interaction between Matt and Josie, Sam felt like he was being
tortured. Slowly and steadily, he was losing the great love of his life due to
his own cowardice and stupidity.
The
third batter up for the teachers was Ms. Knox. Rob looked at her, hesitated,
called time out, and walked up to her. "How am I supposed to pitch to you
when you look so cute in those shorts, Ms. Knox?" Rob joked with her.
"It's really not fair."
Marilyn
Knox blushed and giggled as Rob laughed and turned around, heading back for the
pitcher's mound.
Matt
used the opportunity to touch Josie on the shoulder and say a little too
loudly, "If he feels that way about her, imagine how I feel being so close
to you, Josie. How am I supposed to concentrate when you look so sexy?"
Sam
watched as Rob whirled around to give Matt a sharp look, and he realized that
Rob didn't like whatever it was that Matt had just said to Josie. If Rob
looked that upset; then Sam felt like he didn't even want to know what
might have been said. He was afraid he really would have to punch Matt
in the face and call the game.
But
for the first time, Sam noticed that Josie also looked annoyed by
whatever it was that Matt had said. He noticed that she made a face similar to
the one he'd seen the day the assistant golf pro had put his arms around her.
He saw her move away from Matt and towards Ms. Knox. Matt shrugged it off and
moved back into position. Rob continued to stare at Matt for a long moment, and
then he motioned for Matt to back up again. Matt backed up a little and then
took a step towards Josie. Rob hesitated then pointed again to Matt.
"Back
up there, umpire, or I'll have to call time," Rob insisted. Alarm bells
went off in Sam's head. The usually good-natured Rob obviously felt that Matt
had gone too far this time. Sam realized this was the first time he'd seen any
hint of real anger from Rob.
"Okay,
okay, sorry," Matt said amiably, shrugging at Rob.
Rob
had two strikes on Ms. Knox when she hit one foul in the air along the third
base side. Josie threw off her mask, almost running into Sam to make the catch
for the out to end the inning. Sam was finally close enough to her to try to
say something to her to mend the fences.
"Nice
catch, Josie," he said sincerely, as the music between the innings started
to play.
Josie
nodded at him, but didn't make eye contact.
As
she turned away, he said, his voice shaking, "Josie, wait a second."
Josie
hesitated as she started to remove her chest protector. She didn't want to be
near him now, but something in his voice tugged at her heartstrings and made her
pause, albeit reluctantly.
"Here,
let me help you," Sam practically begged as he started to help her remove
her padding. He stopped abruptly when she shook her head and stepped away from
him.
Sam
continued, "Josie, did Matt say something to upset you there? You looked
upset and if you want me to talk to him, I will." Sam offered, as Josie
sat on the ground. Then he bent down and started to help her with her kneepads.
Her temper flared yet again as she realized that, not only did he think that she
couldn't handle Matt on her own, he apparently didn't even think she could
remove her own gear.
Josie
closed her eyes for a second, pain piercing her heart yet again, and then
pushed his hands away from her viciously. "No! Just…don't help me with
anything!" she said sharply.
Sam
quickly realized that instead of making things better, things had for some
reason gotten much worse. "Josie…please," he said helplessly.
She
turned to glare back at him, her face grim. "I know this is probably hard
for you to believe, but he was complimenting me. I think it just came
out wrong. I guess it just surprised me that someone would be that interested
in me in that way. But, it's not your problem; it's mine. I may not be used
to that kind of attention, but I can handle it. Don't worry about it…
And for God's sake, don't feel sorry for me or feel like you're obligated
to help me anymore, okay!?"
Sam
was stunned by her icy tone shocked that she would think that he felt sorry for
her. "Josie, I don't feel sorry for you. I…I…"
"You
what?" Josie challenged angrily. She waited while Sam hesitated.
He
knew that practically the whole school, including his boss, was in the stands.
As much as he wanted to tell her how he felt, he just couldn't get the words to
come out.
She
shook her head in disgust and looked at the ground, tears stinging at the
corners of her eyes. His silence spoke volumes. But, she had decided that no
matter what, she wouldn't cry. Living with all the rejection and frustration of
being an outcast for so long had taught her to accept what she could not change
and move on.
She
looked him straight in the eye and said sarcastically, "Yeah, sure you
don't. Look, just play your position, all right? I am not your problem,
Mr. Coulson. You don't need to fix me. And thanks for offering to help
me with my equipment, but I'm a big girl now and I've been doing it since I was
six. I appreciate all your sympathy, but I am not a child and I'm not
the total pathetic loser that you—and your girlfriend apparently—think I am. I
can be strong and I can solve my own problems, and that includes your friend
Matt. So stay out of my life and we'll both be fine!" She got up
and started to stalk off.
"Aw,
Josie…no, please…" Sam said helplessly to her retreating back, but she
ignored him and kept walking towards the dugout.
"Hey,
Sam… Here's your glove. Let's go," Scott broke in, tossing Sam his glove.
Sam
had to blink back tears as he watched Josie go into the dugout. With a stadium
full of spectators, he knew he couldn't chase after her and make his apologies.
He was crushed by all that she'd said to him and all the hurt and anger he'd
seen in her eyes.
*
* *
By
the bottom of the second inning, the score was still 1-0 for the students. The
next batter up for the teachers was Sam. He put on the helmet and took a few
swings, glancing at Matt and Josie, who were getting into position. 'What a
nightmare,' Sam thought to himself. 'Matt that close to Josie and she doesn't
mind, and her so angry at me for treating her like a child when all I want
to do is treat her like an adult…'
Sam
was so rattled that he took Rob's first pitch, a perfect strike down the center
of the plate. He glared at Matt when he called it a little too loudly.
"God,
Sam…if looks could kill… Lighten up, would ya?" Matt tried to joke him out
of it.
He
noticed Matt again touching Josie's shoulder and whispering in her ear and
smiling. Josie's eyes were flashing angrily when she turned and looked at Sam.
He wasn't sure if she was angry with Matt or just still so furious at him. He
tried to get her to look at him, but she just looked at the ground and picked
up a piece of dirt and threw it back down…anything, he realized, to avoid
making eye contact. Then Rob put up a hand for time, and there was a brief
delay while Rob stopped to confer with Aldys and Guy.
"Josie,
your hair smells so wonderful…like flowers," Matt said quietly, but it was
loud enough for Sam to overhear.
Sam
grimaced. He wanted to scream, "Not flowers…Peach blossoms! She
smells like peach blossoms, dammit!" but he bit his tongue.
"Thanks,"
Josie said quietly.
The
next pitch was low and outside, and Sam didn't swing at it, but Matt called it
a strike. Sam turned around to glare at his friend. Even Josie turned to look
at Matt, but she didn't say anything.
"Could
you back up a little, please?" Josie said softly.
"Sure,
Josie, sorry," Matt said politely.
Sam
winced, realizing that Josie's motivation was less about Matt crowding her, but
more to be as far away from him as possible.
Sam
noticed that even Rob looked surprised by the last call. Matt called the next
pitch a ball, so the count was one ball and two strikes. Between pitches, Sam
kept trying to make some kind of connection with Josie, but to no avail. 'She
looks at everything, but me,' he realized sadly.
On
the fourth pitch, Sam connected, hitting a home run over the right field fence.
He was glad to be away from the Matt/Josie situation at home plate, because
he'd felt as if he were going to explode at any second. Fortunately for Sam, he
exploded by scoring the run to tie the ball game. After he touched home plate
and was congratulated by his teammates, he took up his position coaching along
the third base line. And still Josie was making a conscious effort not to look
at him.
The
inning came to a close without any more runs scored. This time as the inning
ended, Josie was able to stay away from Sam as she took off her equipment. He
noticed her pacing in the dugout and kicking the dirt. She looked like she was
mad at the entire world.
As
the next two innings progressed, Josie succeeded in keeping her distance from
Sam.
This
distance did not go unnoticed by Sam. During the bottom of the innings, when
his team was batting and Sam was positioned along the third base line he
continued to watch helplessly as Matt persistently talked to Josie and touched
her whenever he could. Sam felt as if he was losing her more with every pitch
out of Rob's hand.
He
kept thinking about what she'd said about him staying out of her life and
letting her handle her own problems. He knew she was angry about how Matt had
interpreted his behavior that day in the car: as a teacher protecting his young
student instead of as a man in love with her. To be fair, that had been the
impression he'd wanted Matt to have, but the truth was then and always
would be that Sam saw her as the woman he was in love with, and he wanted Matt
and every other man to stay away from her out of jealousy, pure and simple. He
felt like the biggest hypocrite in the world.
Sam's
biggest fear wasn't that Matt would take advantage of her. Sam knew that in his
heart, he was terrified of something quite different: he was scared to death
that Josie would be attracted to Matt because Matt could say the things to her
that Sam could not. Matt could tell her how beautiful and desirable she was. In
fact, Matt could express everything he was feeling about her while Sam was
forced to restrain himself.
At
top of the sixth inning the score was still tied 1-1. The next up for the
students was Guy Perkins. Sam noticed that Guy also was glaring at Matt and
looking at him after questionable calls. Guy hit the third pitch straight into
centerfield where Marilyn Knox stumbled and fell. When she finally got to the
ball and threw it to Sam, Guy was safely on third base.
Next
up was Josie. This time, Scott Romano threw junk his first pitch and she took
it for a ball. The second pitch was clearly a strike, but Matt called it a
ball. Sam noticed Josie turn around and say something to Matt and then she
shook her finger at him. Sam couldn't hear what Josie had said, but it was
clear that Matt was taken aback by whatever it was. Sam noticed that she looked
angrier than ever. At least he knew that she was angry with Matt now too, for
all the good it did Sam.
Rob
gave her the signal and Josie hit the next pitch straight into centerfield,
just as they had planned. Once again Ms. Knox bobbled the ball, finally
relaying it to the third baseman. Guy came home to score easily for the
students, giving them their second run.
As
Josie rounded second and dove for third, the third baseman relayed the ball to
Sam who was covering third. Josie had already begun her head first slide when
Sam caught the ball and placed one foot on the bag. As she slid with her arms
outstretched and Sam reached out to tag her, somehow she grabbed his leg and
they ended up in a tangled heap on the ground.
The
outfield umpire called Josie out, but Matt disputed the call, saying that from
his point of view she was safe. Because of the angle, it was a difficult call
and Rob and Coach Romano both were out on the field arguing with both umpires.
There was a lot of yelling from the crowd, too.
While
all this was going on, Josie found herself lying on top of Sam with her head on
his chest, breathing heavily from her exertion.
Sam
knew it was now or never. This was his one chance to make things right. He bent
his head to whisper to her. "Josie?" he said tentatively, knowing how
angry she was with him. When she didn't answer and didn't move, he asked
worriedly, "Josie, are you okay, hon?"
The
endearment slipped out before he even realized he'd said it. All his faculties
were focused on Josie. It was killing him having her so close and not be
able to touch her. Part of it was their surroundings, but it was more knowing
how upset she was. And now he didn't even know if she might be hurt.
A
shocked Josie nodded against him in answer to his question, but she didn't move
as she was trying to catch her breath and come to terms with what she thought
she'd just heard him say all at the same time. Even innocently falling on top
of Sam during a ballgame like this, even having been furious with him, she felt
the familiar excitement that she felt whenever she was close to him.
Sam
knew this would probably be his only chance to say anything to her and since
both of the teams were heatedly arguing the call, he knew it would be a minute
before anyone noticed them.
Sam
knew he had to try to explain and this might be his only opportunity to do so.
And at this point, he was desperate and at his wits end. Throwing a bit of
caution to the wind, he tried to whisper over the sound of his heart pounding
in his ears, "Please don't be angry at me, Josie. I…I only said that stuff
to Matt because…" Sam paused a moment to swallow the lump in his throat,
and then spit out, "…because I was jealous. Please forgive me. Please,
Josie," he begged.
Josie
slowly rolled off him and they both stood up and brushed themselves off. Josie
peeked over to the side. Rob and Coach Romano were still arguing the call.
Finally, Josie looked into Sam's eyes for the first time since sixth period.
"Jealous?"
she said softly. She was afraid to hope that it might be true, because that
would mean…
Sam
nodded, looking into her eyes for a moment, and then he looked down at the
ground in embarrassment.
"Because…of
me?" She asked, not quite believing it.
"Yes,"
he whispered. "Yes, Josie," he said it clearly the second time,
wanting to make sure that she heard him.
Josie
bit her lip and looked at him for a moment. She swore she would never ask him,
but now she just couldn't help but let it slip out. "But…my paper?"
she asked, the hurt and fear reflecting in her eyes.
Sam
looked at her again and sighed. "I…didn't know what to do. I felt like my
hands were tied and I couldn't handle the situation the way I wanted, so I
ended up doing something stupid and insensitive instead. Forgive me?" He
wished he could say more, but he knew that the time wasn't right for that.
She
felt her heart melt as she looked into his eyes and she nodded, a tremulous
smile on her lips. 'How could I not forgive him when he looks at me like that?'
she wondered. He looked so sincere and so sweet.
Sam
had never felt so relieved in his entire life. They looked at each other for
reassurance and their eyes locked then and nothing else mattered much to either
one of them.
Rob
walked over to Sam and Josie. He sensed that something had changed between
them. Josie's stance had softened and Mr. Coulson looked much more relaxed now.
Not to mention they were staring at each other again. He cleared his throat and
then said, "The call stands, Jos; you're out. But at least we tried. And
Guy's run scored." Turning to Sam and slapping him on the back, he
complimented, "Nice play, Mr. C."
"Thanks
Rob," Sam said quietly, smiling now. At that moment he wasn't even sure
what play Rob was talking about. He felt like the weight of the world had
lifted from his shoulders.
Josie
had already started to walk back to the dugout. She had a lot to think about.
She knew now that Sam did have feelings for her…or at least he was fighting
feelings for her. This time when she turned around in the dugout, she met his
gaze and they smiled at each other for the first time in what seemed like
forever to both of them. She knew the only way to stay angry at him was never
to see him again, because as sweet as he was and as much as she loved him, she
knew she would always end up forgiving him, no matter what.
In
the bottom of the sixth inning Coach Romano was up for the teachers and to
Rob's surprise the coach hit the first pitch for a homerun. Rob was so
surprised that he lost his footing and twisted his right knee. It only hurt for
a second, but it was his bad knee so he was a little anxious about it.
"You
okay, Rob?" Josie yelled at her brother.
"Yeah
I'm fine, don't worry," Rob waved at her. When the inning was over, Rob
ran up to Josie and put his arm around her.
"I'm
going to pretend to hurt my knee when I'm up," he whispered. "I want
to try something here with Guy and Aldys, so just go along with me, okay?"
"Are
you crazy, Rob!?" Josie whispered.
"No,
just go along with me, it'll be fine. I have a plan. Just trust me,
Josie."
"Okay
Rob," she smiled graciously at her little brother. "You're the
boss."
"Just
keep that in mind from here on out." He grinned at her and she swatted his
arm.
At
the top of the seventh inning the score was tied 2-2. Rob was the first batter.
Coach Romano threw three balls and two strikes, for a full count on Rob. Rob
squinted and smiled at Coach Romano, who shuddered then. At that point Rob
looked at Marilyn Knox who looked like she was in a daze out in centerfield and
he hit one out in her direction.
This
time however, while Ms. Knox wasn't able to catch the ball, she did pick it up
pretty quickly to throw it to second. Rob ran with all his strength and was
safe on second, but the slide caused his knee to give way and he lay on the
ground for a moment.
At
this point Josie and Aldys both ran out to him. He looked at both of their
worried faces and winced. "God, you guys… I didn't die or
anything…don't look so sad." He reached for their hands, and they pulled
him to a stand. Rob tested his knee and then leaned a hand over Josie's
shoulder for support. Looking over at Aldys, he acted as if he just got an
idea. "Hey, Aldys… You come in and run for me, okay?"
Aldys
nodded.
"You
can do it, Aldys," Rob encouraged. "I'm counting on you, now. I know
you can do it!" Rob smiled at her.
Sam,
standing off to the side at shortstop, saw what was happening. "Hey Rob,
do you need help?"
"Nah,
I'm fine. I just twisted it, that's all," Rob said. "It's an old
injury. It does this and I just have to rest it for a bit and then it's all
better like right away. Josie knows." They all looked at her and she
nodded. "Maybe Matt here could tape it for me."
Matt
nodded and ran to the dugout for bandages and tape. Rob had a few things he
wanted to say to Matt privately during the knee taping.
"You'd
better sit the rest of this one out, Rob," Josie said quietly, playing
along. "You've got that State championship game on Monday and you don't
want to take any chances…"
"Yeah,
really, she's right. You don't want to take a chance on a more serious injury
here," Matt agreed.
"I'm
okay, but… all right. I'll put Guy in pitching, okay, Mr. C?"
Sam
nodded. Then he and Josie smiled at each other. It couldn't have mattered less
to either one of them who pitched or who won at this point.
"And
I want Aldys to fill in for Guy at shortstop for the bottom of the
inning."
Josie
looked surprised and whispered to him so no one else could hear, "Are you
sure, Rob?"
"I'm
sure," he replied knowingly. "I've practiced with her and Guy for two
days. I know she can do it."
"Good
thinking there, Rob," Coach Romano smiled. "Smart coaching,
son."
"Thanks,
Coach," Rob beamed.
Time
was called while Matt proceeded to wrap Rob's right knee.
The
next batter up was Jason. He hit a line drive up the middle and almost everyone
cheered as Aldys scored the go ahead run.
Gibby
nudged Kirsten as they watched from the stands. "It looks like we need to
show 'Alpo' her place. Next thing you know she'll want to come to Prom,
too!"
Aldys
came up and hugged Rob after she crossed home plate and the whole team gave her
high fives for scoring the run. "Hey Aldys, you're my shortstop now,"
Rob said seriously. "I know you can do it, show everybody, okay?"
She
nodded. "Okay Rob, I'll do my best."
"That's
all I ask for, Aldys. You'll be great. I believe in you." As the top half
of the inning ended the students were ahead 3-2. The teachers came up to bat
with Marilyn Knox popping up for the first out, which was caught easily by
Aldys. The second batter grounded out to first.
The
third batter for the teachers was Sam. As he walked up, he looked at Josie and
smiled…and this time she smiled back.
When
he saw her smile that wonderful smile at him, all the tension and anxiety about
Matt disappeared. He knew that Josie had forgiven him and that was the only
thing that mattered to Sam. He glanced at Matt and grinned at him, too.
Matt
saw the positive interaction between Sam and Josie and was a little perplexed.
He decided to continue to try to yank Sam's chain again. "Did I ever tell
you that you have the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen?" he said to
Josie, clearly loud enough for Sam to overhear.
Sam
turned around and grinned. "Thanks Matt, I didn't know you cared. They're
green, actually." Sam winked at Josie. She giggled out loud and then put
her hand over her mouth to stifle it.
Matt
rolled his eyes. "Not you, her," he said and pointed at Josie.
"Well,
then, I'd have to say that I completely agree with that, Matt," Sam said
and smiled at her.
"Thank
you," Josie blushed and looked at Sam and they smiled into each other's
eyes, each one reminded of their dream about the other. It was the first time
that Sam had ever complimented her like that, and even if he was echoing
Matt, it meant the world to Josie.
'What
the…?' Matt Riley thought to himself. He'd been flattering her the entire game
and he'd never once seen her face light up like it did when Sam spoke to her.
Then suddenly it all made sense… even the weird conversation he'd just had with
Rob. 'I should've known,' he thought to himself as he shook his head. 'They like
each other!' In fact, they were staring at each other as if there was no one
else in the world. Matt cleared his throat and they set up for the next pitch.
With
two outs and two strikes, and the teachers behind 3-2 in this, the last inning
of the game, Sam hit a grounder into right field for a double. The next batter,
Ms. Brown, the ladies' gym coach and the Teachers' first baseman, had a full
count when she hit into centerfield. The centerfielder relayed the ball to
Aldys. As Sam rounded third and headed for home, Aldys's job was to throw the
ball to Josie for the out. Josie set herself up in the base path with her glove
out, waiting for the ball.
Sam
knew that this play would either tie or lose the ball game. He also knew that,
with Josie blocking the base path, he would need to run or slide into her to
have any chance of scoring.
The
whole crowd was on its feet cheering, either for him to score, or for Josie to
make the out. As much as he hated the idea, he knew that he had no choice but
to give it his best shot. He had to run full throttle if he expected to score,
so he turned on the power, hoping to make it by Josie before she caught the
ball, or at least to avoid hitting Josie directly.
Josie
had done this before. She knew what her job was. Get the ball for the out and
hold on to it while blocking the base path. She knew that Sam was going to have
to run into her if he expected to score, but she wasn't worried. No one had
ever budged her from that path in all her years of playing. Even Gus Strauss
had once told her, "Geller, you're the toughest catcher I've ever
seen!" and Gus never complimented anybody.
She
had stood her ground against players of all sizes, and both sexes… But in the
past, Josie had been 20 pounds heavier. Now her center of gravity was
different… but, not really thinking of that, she was setting up the same old
way, expecting to stand her ground.
It
all happened so quickly that Sam wasn't sure whether Josie even had the ball or
not. He looked up from his running to realize that he was too close to her to
avoid a direct collision…and at full speed. Cursing himself, he wondered why he
hadn't realized sooner that Josie was not about to move, no matter what
was coming at her.
He
heard the thud of the ball hitting her glove a split second before he plowed
into her and she tagged him with her glove. The force of their collision caused
Josie to fly off to the base path and land hard on her right side facing away
from him in the infield. In all his years of playing ball he'd never hit anyone
as hard as he'd hit Josie.
As
the seconds ticked by and Josie didn't move, the crowd quickly fell silent, waiting.
Shaken
himself, Sam was sprawled out with his hand just touching home plate. 'Oh,
Josie, please be okay,' Sam prayed silently and he turned to stare at her
motionless form. Her body was turned away from him and he couldn't even tell if
she was breathing.
Matt
walked over to where she was lying to check on her.
"Josie,
Josie, are you okay?" Matt asked, bending over her. He placed a hand on
her shoulder and shook her slightly. Josie didn't open her eyes, but she
groaned a little. Then, ever so slowly, Josie turned her mitt to expose it to
Matt's view. She still had the ball safely tucked inside.
Matt
stood up, motioned to Sam with his thumb and called, "You're out!"
And with that, the game was over.
The
crowd cheered wildly, and chanted, "Josie! Josie! Josie!"
Sam
was still frozen in place, and he heard the yelling as if it was far away. All
he cared about was the fact that Josie still laid on her side and except for
holding her glove up, she hadn't moved. He saw Rob rushing over to her, and he
realized she wasn't getting up. It spurred him into action, and he scrambled up
to run over to where she was lying. As far as Sam could tell, Josie still
hadn't answered Matt, and she still had her eyes closed. Sam was afraid to
breathe. 'Oh God, what have I done?' he thought miserably, as he watched Rob
try to tend to her.
"Josie,
come on, wake up!" Rob was bending over her now, staring at her. He looked
over at Sam. "Snap out of it, Josie! You're scaring Mr. Coulson and
everybody else. Come on; wake up!! You won the game, Josie!"
Straightening
up, Rob gestured at Sam. "She just had her bell rung, Mr. Coulson. She
gets knocked out pretty easily, but she always comes around." Rob gestured
for Matt to come back and look at her again, and then bent down on one knee
next to Josie and shook her arm gently. "Come on, Josie… Look at me!"
Sam
walked over to the other side of her. He bent down on one knee then and laid a
hand softly on her arm. "Josie, I'm so sorry," he started. Her eyes
were closed and she looked deathly pale. Sam bent closer until his lips just
touched her ear. "Josie, you've got to be okay! Please, open
your eyes for me!"
Suddenly,
her eyelashes fluttered then and Josie sighed and then looked up through a haze
to see Sam and Rob staring at her worriedly.
"Gus
is gonna kill me," she murmured before she closed her eyes once again.
Sam
was completely confused. He looked at Rob and frowned. "Gus who?"
"Uh…He's
her summer softball coach, Mr. C. She's just a little loopy when she's out of
it like this." And to Josie, Rob urged, "Come on, Josie…you know Gus
isn't here. We're all at South Glen South. I'm here, Mr. Coulson's here, and
Matt the umpire is here and everything's fine."
Josie
blinked. "Sam," she whispered. Luckily it was only loud enough for
Sam, Rob, and Matt to hear. Matt raised his eyebrows and looked at Sam, then at
Rob. Rob shrugged and rolled his eyes as if he didn't know what that meant.
Meanwhile, Sam felt the now-familiar jolt of warmth rush over him, just as it
always did when she said his name.
"What
are you doing here?" she asked, confused, making eye contact with him at
last. "What's going on?"
Sam
breathed normally for the first time in minutes. He smiled at her tenderly.
"You made the play that won the game, Josie," he said softly.
"I'm out. Are you okay?"
She
smiled at Sam, thinking how incredibly handsome he was when he was worried.
"I'm fine. Are you okay? We hit each other didn't we?'
He
closed his eyes. It was so like Josie to think of him before herself, even
though she was the one lying on the ground hurt.
"I'm
fine too, Josie. I ran into you…hard. I…misjudged, I guess. I didn't think you
would stand your ground like that. I'm sorry."
"We
both did our jobs like always, Sam," she murmured.
"What?"
Sam was completely baffled now. "Both did our jobs? What do you mean,
Josie? Oh playing ball, I see."
Meanwhile,
Rob could see that this conversation of his sister's was going nowhere good
fast. If she wasn't careful, she was going to completely blow her cover. Well,
that wasn't something he thought there should be other people around to
witness. "Okay, guys," he said to the teammates and teachers milling
around, "Give her some space, okay?" Once they all backed off, he
turned to Matt and said, "Hey, do you have a medical kit or
something?"
Matt
pushed himself up from his knees and said, "Sure, it's with my stuff. I'll
go get it."
Now
that they were alone, Rob said to Sam, "She's just babbling, Mr. C. When
she got knocked out a couple of weeks ago, you should have heard her. She
thought that being in high school was a dream or something. She didn't
even recognize me at first, remember Josie? It's me, Rob, your best friend, and
Mr. Coulson, your English teacher."
"A
dream…" Josie murmured, looking up at Sam hazily. "Yes…I had a
beautiful dream about you last night…"
Sam's
eyes flew open wide in shock. "You dreamt about me?" he asked
hoarsely. He could see that her eyes were still unfocused even though she was
conscious.
"Uh
huh. I came to visit you, and… I didn't have to go back to my turtles and my
penguin… You touched my arm and didn't send me away. It felt so
real." She sighed dreamily.
Sam
suddenly couldn't breathe. It was if he'd had the wind knocked out of him. She
was describing his dream. 'That couldn't be, could it?' he thought
nervously. He knew there was an unexplainable connection between them, but
sharing a dream…that was just beyond the realm of possibility…wasn't it? But…it
certainly sounded like the same incredible dream. He wanted her to
continue describing her dream, to know if it was indeed the same as his, but
yet he was scared to death to find out that it was identical to his own,
and what that might mean.
"And
then you…" Josie started to say.
"Whoa,
whoa! Stop right there, Josie," Rob interrupted. "I don't think we
want to go there at the moment, do we?" Rob insisted; looking
around nervously to make sure no one else had overheard. "Come on, here;
listen to me. Focus now, okay? I don't think Mr. Coulson needs to hear about
that right now."
Rob
snuck a quick glance at Sam to see how he had handled the news of Josie
dreaming about him. He could see that Sam was shocked…but apparently shocked
and very, very happy.
Still,
he wanted Josie awake and alert as soon as possible…before she could say
anything else to incriminate herself. He continued, "Maybe you can write a
paper for him or something. Since he's your teacher and you're his
student… Talk to me now, Josie. It's me, Rob. Talk to me, here. No more talking
about your dream, okay? Just let us know that you are back in reality with us
here. No more reenacting The Wizard of Oz." He gently slapped her
cheek. "Come on now, just like when you ran into that door. "
Suddenly
as Rob slapped her, Josie realized where she was and what was happening. 'Oh
God, what have I been saying?' she wondered. She couldn't remember. She looked
at Sam and smiled. "I…I'm okay now," she said. Then she noticed that
he was blushing, but he was positively beaming at her. 'Now why would he look
at her like that?' she wondered. Obviously, she concluded, he must just be
relieved that she was conscious and talking.
Just
then, Matt came back with his bag and helped as Sam and Rob helped Josie sit
up. Even though it seemed that she was finally talking coherently, he could
also see that she still looked confused and he glanced at Matt, obviously
concerned, saying, "Do you think she might have a concussion or
something?"
"Hard
to tell, Sam," Matt replied. "Maybe we should take her to the
Emergency Room and get her checked out."
"Really,
I think she'll be fine. Won't you, Josie?" Rob urged.
Josie
interrupted, saying, "No, no, I'm fine really. I'm sorry. I was just out
of it for a minute. I'm better now, really." she argued. "I know the
symptoms to watch for. Really, I feel okay now. Please don't worry about
me." She was still trying to remember what she'd said when she'd been
waking up, but she couldn't quite get a handle on it. "What did I say,
anyway?"
Rob
and Sam exchanged glances and then Sam said, "It's okay, Josie. It was
nothing to worry about. And Rob's right. You and I can talk about it later, but
right now don't worry about anything except feeling better. You really think
you're okay?"
"Yes,"
she nodded. "I'm sorry if I scared you. I've been knocked out before,
haven't I, Rob? I hope I didn't say anything awful," she said as she
blushed with embarrassment. Sam sure was looking at her strangely.
"Don't
worry about anything, Josie. You didn't say anything bad. It was quite the opposite,
if the truth be told."
Josie
looked really curious now, but Sam cut in before she could ask again. "You
look much better now, like you're more yourself, I think. Wouldn't you say so,
Rob?" Sam asked.
She
knew where she was now at least and she'd stopped talking about her dream, Rob
realized with a sigh of relief. "Yeah, Mr. C," Rob offered.
"When we were little she used to get knocked out like that every other
game. I think it has something to do with being so stubborn at her position…you
know how catchers are," he teased and peeked at Josie. "Plus, this
one has an extremely hard head."
She
frowned and then she started to reach out to slap Rob's leg.
"Easy!
Easy there, hothead! I was just kidding!" Rob smiled.
Sam
laughed. He wondered briefly if she was aware now of what she'd told him. She'd
looked so confused about it that he doubted it.
"You
did an amazing job catching, Josie," Sam said sincerely as he looked into
her eyes. He couldn't fight the urge to brush her hair out of her eyes then and
he tenderly touched her cheek and smiled at her. "Just rest there now for
a minute. I'm so glad you're okay," he said softly. They were both smiling
at each other again as if they were the only two people on earth.
Coach
Romano stepped up to Rob then. Rob stood, meeting his coach's appreciative
gaze.
"Great
job, Rob," he said shaking his hand.
"Thanks,
Coach! You guys made it tough, though… You gave us a good game!"
"How's
the knee, Rob?"
"It's
better already, Coach. Don't worry, I'll play in the championship no matter
what!"
Sam
looked up at Rob. "That was sheer genius, Rob, putting Guy in to pitch and
having Aldys at Short… Great job! I was really impressed!"
"Thanks
Mr. C," Rob beamed.
Sam
was still kneeling next to Josie.
Rob
smiled at them. "I couldn't have done it without my secret weapon,
here." He nudged Josie with his foot.
"You
were great, Rob!" She smiled up at him.
Guy,
Tommy and Jason were standing to the side. "Kegger Party - my house
tonight!" Jason yelled.
"Hey
Robster, Josie, ya going?" Guy yelled.
"Yeah,
yeah man, we'll be there, go ahead… I'll bring Josie," Rob yelled back.
Sam
and Josie both frowned at Rob.
Rob
kneeled down next to them and looked around surreptitiously. Matt was off to
one side now, talking to Coach Romano so only Sam and Josie were within
earshot.
"I
don't want to do that, Rob," Josie said quietly.
Sam
smiled a little and sighed with relief.
"No,
I know," Rob said, looking at Sam. "We're supposed to meet our
parents, uh…Josie's and mine…for dinner. Anyway, I forgot to tell you
about that, Josie."
"But
you told those guys…" she interrupted.
"Yeah,
yeah, but they'll get drunk and wasted… They'll never miss us. I don't want to
go, either. I know, we'll just go in the school and change and I'll meet you out
here on the field in a half hour or so, okay? By then they'll all be gone. You
can take a shower or whatever and get dressed and by then we'll meet and just
go do our own thing."
"Okay,
Rob," she said and smiled at Sam, who hadn't left her side. "You should
be some kind of CIA agent or something, the way you plot and
scheme."
Rob
smirked at her and waggled his eyebrows. "Yeah. Either that or a private
eye…or an undercover reporter."
Josie
glared at him and cleared her throat.
"You
two can walk in with me if you want," Sam said as he offered his hand to
Josie to help her up.
She
took his hand trustingly, and he gently helped her to her feet. She squeezed
his hand softly before she let go and he squeezed back. Sam swallowed and
smiled into her eyes.
Even
though Matt Riley had been talking to Scott Romano, he didn't miss any of the
interaction between Josie and Sam. "Hey, nice meeting you, Josie and
Rob," Matt called as he waved and smiled. "Good game."
Josie
and Rob both smiled and waved at Matt.
"See
you later, Sam," Matt called.
"Yeah,
Matt, later," Sam waved to his friend and walked towards the front of the
school with Josie and Rob.
"You
sure you're okay, Josie?" Sam asked, still a little concerned.
"I'm
fine. I didn't know where I was for a minute, but I'm fine now."
"Be
sure you tell your parents what happened in case you feel bad later,
okay?" Sam persisted. "And I'm not treating you like a child.
It's just that I care about you, Josie, and I…"
"I
know. I'm sorry I said that, Mr. Coulson. It's so nice of you to care about me.
I'll be fine, though," she smiled at him. "Rob's right, I do
have a hard head."
"I'll
watch her like a hawk, Mr. C, and if she acts weirder than usual…"
Josie
smacked him hard on the arm.
"Ow!
If she looks sick or anything, I'll get her to a doctor, I promise," Rob
finished rubbing his arm.
"Okay
Rob, I'll hold you to that. I'll see you both tomorrow." Sam looked at
Josie and smiled again. "Bye, Josie."
"Bye,
Mr. Coulson," she said softly as they all parted ways inside the front
door.
*
* *
A
half hour later, Sam was sitting in his classroom grading quizzes in between
thoughts of how much he missed Josie and envied Rob when he heard a light knock
on the door. He was trying not to think about how he and Josie had dreamt about
each other, but the knock caused him to momentarily think about the knock on
his door that he'd heard in that amazing dream.
"Hey
Sam," Scott Romano smiled as he let himself into the room. "Want to
go out to Clyde's for a beer and get a bite to eat?"
"Sure,
Scott," Sam agreed. "Just give me a second to finish up these
quizzes."
Scott
Romano walked over to the window and looked out toward the baseball field.
"What
the heck? Well, I'll be!" he exclaimed, smiling.
"What's
up?" Sam asked, looking up from his papers.
"That
is one beautiful girl, Sam. I don't care what you say… Matt's right about
that," Scott said as he stared out the window. "I'd say she's
breathtaking!"
Sam
got up from his desk and walked up beside Scott. Josie had changed back into
her blue sundress and white sweater and was standing on the pitcher's mound,
apparently waiting for Rob. She'd obviously washed and dried her hair and it
was shining and her face was positively glowing. The lights on the field were
up as it was dark outside now. All Sam could do was swallow and nod as he
stared at her standing alone looking so unbelievably beautiful.
Josie
stood there waiting for Rob, wishing all the while that Sam was the one
coming to take her away from everything. She closed her eyes and smiled
picturing him running up to her there, taking her in his arms, and kissing her.
She hugged herself and ran her hands up and down her arms, imagining Sam
touching her as he done in that wonderful dream.
Sam
felt like flames were licking his body as he watched her. It was like he was
inside her mind for that instant, because he knew what she wanted and he knew
what she was feeling: he was absolutely positive that she was recalling the
dream…their beautiful dream.
Josie's
heart rate accelerated as she heard footsteps approaching. For some reason, she
felt as if Sam were close by, as if he too were thinking of her. Hoping against
hope, she held her breath and opened her eyes, willing it to be Sam, but it was
just Rob standing in front of her, wearing a white dress shirt, tie, and his
best jeans.
From
his vantage point, Sam could almost see the momentary flicker of
disappointment when she realized it was Rob there. Suddenly he knew who
she'd been hoping to see standing in front of her. He knew it as sure as he
lived and breathed. And at that moment, he would have given anything to
have been the one standing before her when she opened her eyes.
Josie
threw back her head and laughed at her little brother. "I think I must be
dreaming. You look so nice, Robert," she said formally and smiled.
"So
dance with me, Josephine," he replied. "I'll put on the music, if
you'll just dance with me."
"No
Rob, not here! What if someone sees us?"
"No
one will…and who cares if they do? Can't a brother dance with his sister? Can't
two friends dance? We won the game; you have everything you want and so do I;
we had a great day! Come on, Josie, dance with me. Do I have to get down on my
knees?" he laughed and started to do it.
She
shook her head and gestured at her head with her hand, "You're crazy, Rob.
Okay, one song."
"And
let me lead for once, Josie!" he yelled back at her as he ran to
put the music on the loudspeaker.
Josie
laughed as John Fogerty's song Centerfield started to play. Rob ran over
to bow from the waist to Josie and they proceeded to dance all around the field
as Rob's favorite song echoed across the field loudly enough that Sam and Coach
Romano could hear it. They both shook their heads and smiled as they watched
the couple dancing.
"Well,
I'll be," Scott Romano exclaimed again. "That wacky kid must think
he's in The King and I or something… Look at them dance! God, I wish he
worked for me… With all that ingenuity and enthusiasm, not to mention
sneakiness!"
Sam
just stood there smiling and watching Josie dance with her friend. She was
laughing and looked so exquisite in that dress. 'God, I wish I could dance with
her, just once,' Sam thought longingly, envying Rob in that moment, as much as
he liked him.
"They're
really good, Sam," Scott exclaimed.
"I
can see that, Scott." Sam smiled and sighed closing his eyes, imagining
what it would be like to hold Josie in his arms and have her smile at him and
look into those beautiful blue eyes.
*
* *
Sam
and Scott were just finishing up their burgers and drinking the dregs of their
beers. They were sitting across from each other in a booth in one of their
favorite pubs, Clyde's, when Sam noticed Matt Riley walking up to them.
"Hey,
guys… Mind if I join you?" he said sliding in next to Scott, not waiting
for an answer.
Scott
looked nervously at Sam.
"Hi,
Matt," Sam said quietly.
"Aren't
you two 'Guardians of Josie's Virtue' going to ask me what happened?" Matt
asked, smiling at Sam.
"Okay,
what happened?" Scott asked as Sam felt the tension returning to his
stomach.
"I
asked her out and she said 'No, thanks.' She shot me down, nicely though, but
the lady still shot me down. And I tried everything I could think of to
persuade her to go out with me. That is one incredible woman," he said
taking a sip of his beer, staring at Sam.
Sam
couldn't help but sigh with relief, but he didn't say anything.
"Well
she was out on the field dancing with Rob when we were leaving… Maybe there's
something between the two of them after all," Scott said.
"No,
it wasn't because of Rob," Matt said, still watching Sam. "In fact,
Rob told me that she's in love with someone else."
"Did
he say who?" Scott asked.
Sam
held his breath.
"As
a matter of fact, he did. He said that she's crazy in love with the
shortstop," Matt said evenly, raising an eyebrow.
Sam
gulped in a breath of air and looked down at the table, trying not to grin like
a lunatic.
None
of this was lost on Matt Riley.
It
was, however, lost on Scott Romano. He said, "Oh yeah, that makes sense.
Guy Perkins, the shortstop. They're going to the Prom together. I didn't
realize it was that serious though," Scott said. "You'd never know it
from seeing them together. I'd say he's pretty lucky if she's in love
with him."
"Yeah,
I just hope that shortstop realizes how lucky he really is," Matt said
seriously, staring hard at Sam again.
"Yeah.
Hey, Matt, you mind? I gotta go to the 'locker room' for a sec…" Matt got
up and Scott excused himself.
Sam
and Matt were left alone at the table.
"You
and I both know which shortstop she's really in love with, don't we,
Sam?" Matt questioned.
Sam
blushed, looked at his friend, and nodded.
"Well
then, I hope you know how lucky you are."
Sam
closed his eyes for a minute, picturing Josie standing on that pitcher's mound,
thinking of him. Sighing, he opened his eyes and met his friend's gaze again.
"I do, Matt. I really do."
To
be continued…